2015 healthy eating

Right New Year, New Years resolutions, get fit, get healthy, eat healthier, lose weight, blah, blah, blah!

Some time towards the end of last year I realised I needed to eat better breakfasts, sugary processed cereals were not doing me any favours. I tried out incorporating more fruit, had yogurt with my cereal and experimented with bagels. Nothing really hit the spot.

What do I want from a breakfast?

It needs to be reasonably quick and easy, tasty and filling and above all it needs to contribute to my overall healthy, active lifestyle and support my running plans.  

I want my breakfasts to incorporate plenty of fruit and/or veg, clean carbs and ideally a good dose of protein as I feel I am not getting enough in my diet.

So thinking about breakfast ideas I came across some great recipes from Tess Agnew (@fitbits) which you can see here.

I used these along with some other ideas as my own inspiration for making my own awesome breakfasts!

Nutty banana protein breakfast smoothie

Using my new Breville blend active smoothie maker and a few basic ingredients I devised a great tasting protein packed smoothie that kept me full all morning. 

Ingredients: A splash of orange juice, a handful of brazil nuts, a banana, half a dozen spoonfuls of natural yogurt and a dash of milk. 

Method: Chuck it in the blender and blend until smooth, simples!

Spinach omelette/frittata/scrambled egg 

Inspired by +FitBits Brighton Veg omelette muffins but without access to any muffin tins (I really need to buy some!) I went freestyle and used the same ingredients and just threw it all together in a omeltte/frittata style. Awesome! So quick! So easy and so amazingly tasty! 

Ingredients: two eggs, a big scoop of spinach, and some mushrooms and baby/plum tomatoes. 

Method: Chop up the veg, throw in a wok/frying fan with a bit of oil, lightly fry for a bit then chuck in the eggs and scramble. Serving on a piece(s) toast optional. 

So they are the two breakfast stables at the moment, a nice balance of a sweet option and a savoury one as well, I had each twice last week setting me up for the day ahead and plenty of training. I need to work on a few more options but these two options will serve me well I feel and they are both versatile enough to incorporate a range of ingredients, e.g. peppers instead of mushrooms and a variety of nuts in the smoothie. 

Other healthy eating meals from 2015: 

I am a big fan of stir frays, and why not? Loads of veg, and plenty of flavoursome sauces to use, my downfall is a large portion of prawn crackers that I usually accompany a stir fry with.

Earlier in the week I whipped up a veggie stir fry with extra mushrooms, minus the prawn crackers and with the healthier option of rice noodles instead of the usually wheaty noodles. 

Clean eating lunch time meals: 



As it seems spinach only comes in large family sized gigantic packs I had a lot of it going spare! So I used it with some tomatoes, mushrooms and courgettes along with brown rice for a tasty nutritious lunch time pack up for work.









On a Friday you need something a bit decadent and enjoyable, it doesn't need to be healthy and fatty though, sweet potato! What is more tasty, luxurious and so enjoyable to eat than sweet potato?! Through in some kidney beans for a bit of substance and protein and you have a healthy clean eating great tasting lunch!

Evening meals:

Its too easy to eat some rubbish in the evening when you are tired after a long day and I am too find of throwing a pizza in the oven as a quick, filling, satisfying meal especially after training. 

So here we go an easy homemade healthier pizza: 

Here I made too different types of pizza both using wholemeal pittas as a base. The standard pizza using ketchup as a base with a topping of cheese and then mushrooms, tomatoes and peppers. My even healthier option then used homemade guacamole (Mashed avocado with a squish of lime) as a base with a little cheese and courgettes and peppers as a topping. So tasty, so enjoyable and surely so much healthier than a takeaway pizza or a frozen pizza. At the weekend I even tried just a pitta with guacamole and courgettes with n cheese and this worked out really well and was obviously so much healthier without any cheese. 


I hope you enjoyed looking at these recipes and are maybe even inspired to try these or something similar out yourself?! Happy 2015, hope its a healthy one! 

Post marathon eating binge

After a marathon you are meant to eat loads right?

Firstly to replace all the calories you have burned and to refuel your body with all the nutrients it needs to recover from its exertions.

Secondly to reward yourself for all the hard work during the actual marathon and all the efforts of training. 

I know using food, especially bad junk type food as a reward is not a healthy mindset but hey we all do it, right?! 

To be honest following this latest marathon I haven't had a massive appetite. Directly after running I felt empty and quickly consumed some water, a lucozade and a mars bar from my race goodie bag along with a tortilla wrap. But other than that I didn't feel hungry and writing this article three days on I still haven't had a huge hunger. 

Come an hour or two later I still didn't feel that hungry. Not really knowing what I wanted to eat only knowing I should eat we headed to wetherspoons as I knew they at least provided a wide range of food options, my selection was a Mexican chicken burger and two pints of cool refreshing cider.

To be honest I struggled to finish! It wasn't the greatest burger but was perfectly edible and wetherspoon chips are a personal favourite but I just couldn't really manage it all.

I know your body including your stomach takes an absolute hammering during a marathon and its not easy for your stomach to recover from all the sickly sugary energy gels and lucozades.

Later on in the evening I tucked into a few sweet treats, again not through a sense of need or hunger but from a sense of reward and entitlement.

What the old marketing phrase? A finger of fudge is just enough to give the kids a treat? Or in my case a whole pack is just enough to give the marathon runner his chocolate fix!

My post marathon sugary eating binges are nothing new, after the Beachy Head Marathon last year I consumed pretty much an entire packet of a Marks & Spencer chocolate biscuit selection pack at around 4am in the morning after the run as I couldn't sleep and felt bored in my hotel room with only the biscuits to keep me entertained! 

Monday morning the day after the race I was sure I would feel ravenous after not eating that much on the day of the race so I eagerly looked forward to taking advantage of our hotels buffet breakfast.

I didn't really feel that hungry and to be honest didn't eat a crazy amount, my metabolism is definitely working overtime though as I didn't feel stuffed or bloated at all and my stomach soon felt emptish again.

Tuesday and back at work I treated myself to a Japanese curry as a nice break from my training staple of brown rice or potatoes. 

I then carried on the chocolate eating with a pack of 'family sized' twirl bites. 

I blame supermarkets for providing these snacks at such a cheap price and the advertising them as soon as you walk into the store!

After an intense training programme I think its important to let yourself go for a few days and just eat whatever as its hard to sustain complete healthy eating for longer periods. In my case its necessary to have a few 'cheat' days with another event coming up so quickly so I can get eating bad foods out of my system before I refocus on a healthy diet again.

Thanks for reading, what do you like to eat after a long run? Any favourite cheat foods or weird urges you love to eat after running?

Sunday morning post run brunch

Sunday morning and after my first longish run since the marathon last week (a 12Km threshold run) I felt pretty hungry and wanted something substantial to eat. 

After eating so well and healthy for the weeks leading up to the marathon I have been very much enjoying eating less healthy this week and this morning was no exception. 

After a bit of though and an assessment of what ingredients I had at my disposal I came up with the idea of a breakfast wrap. Modeled on the McDonalds breakfast wrap I thought whatever they can do I can probably do better and slightly healthier! 

Here is a look at my effort:

My concoction consisted of a tortilla wrap, some cheese, two potato waffles, a fried egg and some lightly fried mushrooms and tomatoes. 

It proved to be a very delicious ingenuous brunch idea and was a joy to eat as the egg ran into the melted cheese and mixed in with the tomato ketchup mixing up nicely with the fresh vegetables. 

After a grueling run at a tough pace of a little over 5 min/km as well as dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Bertha which has battered the UK today with heavy rain and strong winds I was so thankful for something tasty to eat!

Weekend run report 21st/22nd June

A busy weekend of running as is pretty much usual! Parkrun on Saturday and a long run on Sunday and both were successful and enjoyable.

Parkrun

My aim once again as it has been in the last few was to try and run a PB or close to PB time and to try and dip under the 22 minute barrier.

It was a beautiful summers morning but I thought it possibly too hot for a good time. 

This week I had decided on a different tactic, I thought I should be more conservative and cautious and not go out so fast.

My usual tactic is to blitz the first Km in around 4 minutes and then try to maintain as fast a pace as possible for the next 2kms, hang in there for the 4th then give whatever I have left on the 5th to try and finish strong.

This week I wanted to go off slower and try to target my efforts to running faster on the parts of the course that would give most benefit namely the sections on concrete or downhill. I also wanted to run stronger through one of the middle sections from 3.5-4Km which is a mentally draining straight path along a grass field. I am usually tiring in this section and find it difficult having this long straight, flat section laid out in front of me  without having the stamina to run it fast.

My race plan worked out pretty well I was more conservative and saved my energy for faster bursts on the concrete paved parts of the course. The dreaded section at 3.5Km was easier too as I managed to pass a few runners in front of me as well and worked hard at keeping in touch with another group of runners just ahead. 

I finished in 22.01 which i think is my 2nd fastest time and certainly my fastest time this summer.

Looking at my splits they were quite typical as I still ran a sub 4 minute first Km and still faltered a bit in the 3rd and 4th Kms.

Perhaps running faster when trying not to is a great sign of me getting stronger and faster?!

Sundays long run

My aim was to cover around 25Km building on my last few runs of between 20&22Km, in the end I covered 26Km in 2 hours 23.

I opted this week to pound the pavements rather than head out into a country park and my route took me from Hornchurch, into Upminster, back to Hornchurch, to Emerson Park, Gidea Park, Romford, back through Gidea Park,  Hornchurch, Upminster then out to Cranham and back to Upminster and Hornchurch. Quite a little journey!

Again I wanted to work on my race strategy and wanted to concentrate on a steady slower pace through the first hour and then build on this to see what speed I could bring and how strong I could run for the remainder. 

Learning as I run 

I am trying to use every long run as a learning experience ahead of the marathon.

For this run I wanted to think about pacing, pre run nutrition, using energy gels and of course bedding in my new trainers for their first proper long run.

Pre run nutrition

I again ate a flapjack around 1.5 hours before running, a banana 30 minutes before as well as an energy drink. This option worked well and I didn't experience any digestive issues or feel like I ran out of energy during the run.

My good energy levels through the run were also helped by the fact I had eaten a good big meal the night before in the form of my wife's massaman curry. The rice and potatoes providing a good carb source while the chicken providing protein for my leg muscles to be in great shape. 

My muscles were further aided by the fact I had a protein shake before bed as well. I think I will be adding both of these factors to my usual pre race routine, that is if I can persuade my wife to cook for me on most Saturday nights! 

Pacing

As I said I wanted to head off at a good slower steady pace rather than push myself through the first hour. I achieved this by covering 12K in the first hour. I then wanted to try and push my pace to try to get close to 18K in hour and a half, I managed 16.5K in around 1 hour 22 before I popped back into the flat for a quick refuel and toilet stop. 

After taking on some water and an energy gel I was able to push on inject some good pace as I headed towards 2 hours with the aim of covering 21K+ in 2 hours, I was pleased with hitting this pretty dead on the head as I covered 21K in 1 hour 59.

My aim then was to hang on and cover the 25K in under 2.5 hours, I was impressed with my stamina and endurance levels of then being able to cover 26K in 2 hours 23.

I continued my recovery experiments by taking another cold water bath as soon as I got which again I found incredibly beneficial. This coupled with a good stretch and a hearty breakfast to refuel with meant I was able to have the energy to crack on with a afternoon of gardening cutting back some seriously overgrown grass in my mother in laws garden.

I did however start to feel the side affects of my long run later in the afternoon as I started to tire and ache. A bit if a stretch, a quick nap and a cracking roast beef dinner soon left me feeling much better though!

So to the week ahead; I plan to run seven days straight through this week as it will be a restful weekend running wise as I will be away.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and I would love to hear any thoughts and comments you have, all the best with your own training and running plans.

Sunday brunch & dinner

What better way to enjoy a sunday than with trying out a nee tasty brunch idea and then having a big roast dinner?

Step one, brunch.

Decided to follow the instructions from this link to try out breakfast cupcakes, http://www.viralnova.com/breakfast-cupcakes/

I think it will take a bit of trial and error to perfect but our first attempts were pretty good and provided such a different hit of the usual breakfast combination of flavours. Basically they are cupcakes made of a bacon outer layer with a bread/toast bottom filled with your choice of breakfast fillings. Bacon really is magic!

Check out the link above for the recipe and some better photos.

Step two, roast dinner.

A classic roast beef sunday dinner with all the trimmings, well mashed potato, roast potato, roast parsnips&carrots and mixed veg anyway.

Can't really beat it on a sunday, I really enjoy cooking it and preping it then of course eating it accompanied by a nice cider.